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A hard-hitting investigation of the history, politics and personalities behind the annual Drumcree stand-off, by Northern Ireland's foremost political journalists
1995 was the first summer of peace in Northern Ireland - except for the small market town of Portadown. There, in defiance of the wishes of the Catholic residents of the Garvaghy Road, the local lodge of the Protestant Orange Order insisted on their traditional march down the road on the way back from their annual church parade at Drumcree. The subsequent stand-off went down in political history as Drumcree One. Drumcrees Two to Six have followed the same pattern, testing the peace process and even costing lives, such as the three young Quinn brothers who perished when their home was petrol-bombed at the height of the tension in 1998. As the marching season of 2001 approaches, with every indication that Drumcree Seven will take place as feared, Chris Ryder and Vincent Kearney explore the background to the stand-offs, the underlying motives of both Protestant and Catholic factions, and the ongoing efforts of the peacemakers to resolve this bitter dispute.
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About Chris Ryder and Vincent Kearney Chris Ryder has worked on the staff of the Sunday Times and was Northern Ireland correspondent for the Daily Telegraph. Vincent Kearney is Northern Ireland correspondent for the Sunday Times. In 1996 he was a member of the Belfast Telegraph team who received the Northern Ireland All News Media award for coverage of the Drumcree stand-off and its aftermath.
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